The Source Provenance of an Obsidian Eden Point from Sierra County, New Mexico

Abstract

Eden projectile points associated with the Cody complex are underrepresented in the late Paleoindian record of the American Southwest. EDXRF analysis of an obsidian Eden point from a site in Sierra County, New Mexico demonstrates this artifact is from the Cerro del Medio (Valles Rhyolite) source in the Jemez Mountains. We contextualize our results by examining variability in obsidian procurement practices beyond the Cody heartland in southcentral New Mexico.

Keywords:

• Eden
• New Mexico
• Jemez Mountains
• obsidian
• EDXRF

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the field crew of HDR Inc. and White Sands Missile Range. Dolan thanks Bonnie Pitblado and the cultural resource staff at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A special thanks to Robert DeBry who provided the outstanding line-drawing of the Eden point. Ted Goebel and three anonymous reviewers provided insightful comments.